New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has recently signed into law a statute regarding the collection of child support payments. This new statute allows a parent to bring a contempt of court action in the Supreme Court against the other parent without having first to exhaust other legal remedies. Prior to the passage of this statute contempt proceedings could be successful only if there were no lesser available remedies. This caused delays in the enforcement of the child support payments.
The possibility that someone will be held in contempt of court and subject to a jail sentence creates a threat that it is expected to have a positive impact on the collection of child support payments.
Conclusion
Collecting child support payments from a recalcitrant parent can be difficult. The Family Court sometimes operates under two speeds, slow and backwards. However, this new statute will hopefully expedite contempt proceedings and assist custodial parents in obtaining child support payments from the child’s other parent.
Elliot S. Schlissel, Esq. is a divorce and family court lawyer representing clients in all aspects of matrimonial and family law throughout the metropolitan New York area for more than 3 decades.
